Walls
by wbearsmom
Summary: The Doctor answers a call for help, and meets Riley. They become fast friends, but will their friendship survive some difficult tests?
1. Prologue

This feeling was new to it. In its many years on Earth it had learned joy, sadness, anger – but this was the first time it felt fear. It moved around its home, sliding through the familiar spaces with ease, but it knew it would not be for long. The building was to be demolished and, if no one came to it's aid, it would die along with the walls it lived in.

It could sense the sadness in the air. Its few friends knew what would happen, and it knew they would help if they could. But the kind of help it needed was beyond them.

In a last desperate attempt at saving it's life, it sent a mental cry into the universe.

And it was heard.


	2. Chapter 1

The Doctor stood in the driveway, staring up at the imposing edifice. "The Sisters of Grace Home for Orphans," he muttered. "Not very homey." He straightened his tie, walked up to the entrance and rang the bell. After a few moments, a young nun opened the door.

"Can I help you?" she asked, looking warily at the Doctor.

"Yes. Hello." He reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a wallet. He opened the flap and showed the piece of paper to the girl. "John Smith, Building Inspector. I understand that this building is to be demolished soon. I just need to verify that everything is in order and that there is nothing in the building that could cause concern for the demolition crews."

The girl opened the door wider. "Please come in, sir. I'll get the Mother Superior." As the Doctor stepped into the entry hall, the girl closed the door behind him and rushed off. He could feel – something – but was unable to investigate further as more nuns were constantly passing through the hallway, giving him odd looks.

"Mr. Smith? I'm Sister Beatrice. I understand you are here to look over the building."

He turned at the voice. A much older nun approached him and held out her hand, which he shook firmly. "Good day, Sister. I apologize for dropping in without notice, but I was in the area for another assignment and I thought I would stop by while I had the time."

"No need to apologize. There are so few of us here any more that there is not much to be done for visitors. Where would you like to start?"

"Well, I don't know. Perhaps you could guide me?"

Her piercing blue gaze met his brown eyes. "Of course. I would be most happy to." They headed down a nearby hallway, making small talk. It wasn't until several rooms had been toured that the Doctor began to suspect he was being given the run-around. He decided to take a bit more of a direct approach.

"Tell me, Sister, have you experienced any strange occurrences here?"

"Strange? In what way?" she responded calmly.

"Well, in buildings this old, oftentimes people feel as if the walls are alive. As if spirits or the ghosts of the past inhabit the building with them."

"Oh, Mr. Smith. We don't believe in that sort of thing. This building is just that – a building. A shell. A shelter from the elements. It has been my home for many years and, while I shall be sad to see it go, I have a new home waiting for me."

"I see," the Doctor said. "So there is nothing here to worry about?"

"Absolutely not." They returned to the entrance hall, and Sister Beatrice turned to face the Doctor. "I presume all is in order?"

"Yes. Yes – everything is fine. Thank you for your time, Sister. I hope the move to your new home goes well for you."

"Thank you, Mr. Smith." She escorted him to the door, and closed it firmly behind him.

Halfway down the driveway the Doctor looked back at the building. He was certain he could feel something in there calling to him. Sister Beatrice had been hiding something, but there was nothing he could do. Frustrated, he continued down the driveway and walked to the nearby town. He was unaware of the several sets of eyes watching him.

*~*~*~*~*

The Reverend Mother returned to her office and summoned the young girl who had answered the door. The girl stepped into the office and, before the older woman could speak, began asking questions.

"Reverend Mother, why did you send him away? He was the one! Did you not know that? I could feel it trying to tell you. How could you not have felt it?"

"Hush, child!" Sister Beatrice said sternly. "You know not to speak of such things." The girl hung her head in defeat, but the Reverend Mother continued. "Now, I need you to do something for me. You must go to the market in town. We are in need of fresh fruits for our dinner tonight. It is early, so take your time. Perhaps you can chat with some of the people in town; after all, you will be living amongst them soon."

The girl looked up, meeting the Reverend Mother's gaze. A silent conversation passed between them, and suddenly the girl understood. She nodded. "As you wish, Reverend Mother."


	3. Chapter 2

Leaning against the corner of the building, the Doctor was barely noticed by the townsfolk. He seemed to be people watching, but in fact his attention was focused on the young nun he had spotted strolling through the market. He recognized her as the same girl that had answered the door at the orphanage. He was working out a way that he could approach her and question her when she looked up and saw him. She stared at him for a long moment, and then began to make her way towards him.

It wasn't long before she was standing in front of him. "Mr. Smith?" At his nod, she continued. "May I speak with you, sir?"

He looked around. "I don't think this is the best of places for us to talk. Walk with me until we can find somewhere less busy." The two strolled for a bit, eventually coming to the town park. They found a quiet bench where they wouldn't be disturbed, but public enough not to arouse the suspicions of anyone seeing a man and a nun together. "Now, Sister, what can I do for you?"

The words burst from the young woman in a rush. "I know who you are. Well, not really, but you came to help. It told me. You can help it, can't you?"

"Slow down," the Doctor said, but not unkindly. "First off, does your Reverend Mother know you are here?"

"Yes. She's the one who sent me."

"Well that's interesting, Sister . . ."

"Riley, sir. My name's Riley"

"Sister Riley. That's unusual." He smiled at her. "And my name isn't really Smith. I'm the Doctor, and yes, I came to help. But let me ask you something. If your Reverend Mother sent you, then why wouldn't she talk to me while I was at the orphanage earlier?"

"Because she couldn't, sir." At an inquiring look from the doctor, Riley continued. "The Sisters of Grace are very devoted to their religion and their spiritual life. They do not believe in ghosts or poltergeists, or the being living in the walls, only the angels and the spirits mentioned within the religion. As the Mother Superior, she could not even begin to speak about the being. To acknowledge it would force her, and the other members of the order by default, to acknowledge that perhaps their religious beliefs are wrong, or that their spirituality and devotion isn't strong enough." She sighed. "All of the nuns know that the being is there. But none of them want to show weakness by talking about it. Or to it."

"But you are here, talking to me now. Aren't _you_ afraid of betraying your religion?"

"Me, sir?" Riley questioned. She grinned ruefully when the Doctor pointed at her dress. "Oh. I'm not really one of the nuns."

"You're not?"

"No sir. You see I've been living at the orphanage since I was seven years old. My parents were killed in an accident, and I had no other relatives to go to. The Sisters took me in, hoping that I would be adopted, but people only want babies – not older children – so nobody even looked at me. When I turned eighteen, they could have turned me out into the streets, but they let me stay in return for my working for them. I don't earn much money, and clothes cost more than I can afford. This dress fit me, and the Sisters allowed me to wear it sort of like a staff uniform. But I'm not allowed to wear the head covering since I'm not really one of them."

"Ah, now I understand," the Doctor responded. "So you aren't Sister Riley, you're just Riley? And I'm sorry about your parents."

"That's alright," she said. "It's been a long time. I don't really think about them much any more." She shrugged, and then looked intently at the Doctor. "Can you help it? The being in the walls?"

"Why are you so concerned about it?" he asked instead of answering her.

"Because it is my friend."

"Your friend?"

"Growing up in the home was very lonely for me. There were only the babies and the nuns, no children my age. It came to me not long after I had gotten there. I was crying – missing my parents so much – and it heard me and appeared in my room. It comforted me, spoke to me when the nuns wouldn't or couldn't. Over the years it stayed with me, letting me talk when I needed to, helping me with my schoolwork. Even helped me out when the nuns wanted to punish me for something – I never had to feel the sting of their switch because it always distracted them until they forgot about punishing me." Riley grinned at the memory. "It helped the Sisters, too, although they didn't know it. You noticed, Doctor, that the building sits in the middle of a large field?" He nodded. "That field is full of mice, rats and insects. But we would rarely see them in the building, and if we did see one we never saw it twice. It eats them, so we never had to worry about them. It also watched over the babies until they were adopted. It could sense if one of them was becoming ill, and it would tell me. I would tell one of the Sisters, and medical attention was sought right away. It truly loved us. And now it is in danger." Tears welled in her eyes, but she brushed the wetness away quickly. "Sorry."

"Riley," the Doctor said soothingly. "I can indeed take care of your friend. But I will need your help to do it."

"Of course. Anything." Riley was quick to answer.

"First, I need to find someplace where it can make a new home. That shouldn't be a problem. But getting it out of your walls without anyone seeing may be a bit sticky."

"Doctor, we are scheduled to move out in a week. We have only two babies left, and they will be off to their new families by Tuesday. The Sisters and I are to move next Saturday, so the building will be empty."

The Doctor looked pleased. "Good. Very good. Would you be able to stay behind for a bit after everyone is gone? We can transport it then."

"That shouldn't be a problem. I'm not going with them, so I can stay as long as you need."

"Fantastic. I'll be by next Saturday afternoon. You will let the being know so it is prepared, right?"

"Yes, I will. I'll also let the Reverend Mother know – as best I can without really saying anything. She will be pleased, even if she can't show it." Riley paused for a moment, and then threw her arms around the Doctor, embracing him tightly. "Thank you."

"You are very welcome." He smiled brightly and hugged her back. "Now, I think you should return home. I wouldn't want that fruit in your basket to spoil." He watched as Riley skipped off in the direction of the orphanage before returning to the TARDIS and starting his search for a new home for the being.


End file.
